Bristol police officers Jason Kasparian, center, and Eric Wethered, right, during a shooting training session Wednesday, May, 8, 2014 in a vacant school building in Bristol using the CAPS firearms judgement training system. less

Bristol police officers Jason Kasparian, center, and Eric Wethered, right, during a shooting training session Wednesday, May, 8, 2014 in a vacant school building in Bristol using the CAPS firearms judgement ... more

Photo: (Peter Hvizdak - New Haven Register)

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Bristol police officer Eric Wethered, left, uses his muscle memory training to insert a magazine into a training Glock firearm during a stressful shooting training session Wednesday, May, 8, 2014 in a vacant school building in Bristol using the CAPS firearms judgement training system. less

Connecticut police use money forfeited by convicted criminals such as drug dealers to buy new police dogs, undercover vehicles, technology, fitness equipment — and to pay for travel to events around the country.

About $1,400 of retiring state police Col. Danny Stebbins’s expenses on trips to conferences in Virginia, California, South Carolina, and Louisiana were paid for with asset forfeiture funds.

While using asset forfeiture funds for travel expenses is allowed when it is for a law enforcement-related purpose, some, like attorney Jonathan J. Einhorn of New Haven, say the practice is inappropriate.

“I don’t think it is appropriate at all,” said Einhorn, a former New Haven police commissioner and a defense attorney who has represented several clients in asset forfeiture cases. “My sense is you use it for hardware and equipment like weapons and vests — you don’t go on boondoggles.”

“The state police have created a slush fund for vacations and travel, and that is just not the purpose,” Einhorn said. “It should be for more direct crime-fighting purposes. If I were a police officer, I would want a new bullet-proof vest for me, rather than send one of my buddies to South Carolina for a vacation.”

Through criminal asset forfeiture programs, after individuals are convicted, some of the cash or vehicles confiscated from them gets distributed to law enforcement agencies for crime fighting efforts.

The New Haven Register asked each police agency in the state about the amount they received in federal and state asset forfeiture funds last year, and how they spent the money.

Of the approximately $254,563 in forfeiture funds it received in fiscal year ending June 2013, state police reported using $4,735 for in-state travel and $34,261 for out-of-state travel. The funds covered expenses including event registration, meals, airfare, mileage, tolls, taxes and gratuities.

Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection Commissioner Dora B. Schriro, who took over the role earlier this year, said she has been focused on reviewing the entire agency to ensure the most efficient use of funds, including the use of asset forfeiture funds for travel.

“We are reviewing all travel to conferences to ensure we are using the funds in the most effective and efficient way possible,” Schriro said in an emailed statement.

Schriro said professional development and advanced training are critical in law enforcement, and she noted that staff was able to attend the FBI Academy and get additional training on topics such as homicide and fraud investigations, internal affairs, accreditation, amusement ride safety inspections and polygraph administration, with asset forfeiture funds.

“That being said, included in my ongoing review of agency activities, is an assessment of our spending with an eye towards maximizing all of our resources,” Schriro said.

Law enforcement agencies around Connecticut got $1.85 million in federal asset forfeiture funds in the 2013 calendar year, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

About 14 percent of police agencies in Connecticut didn’t get any federal or state asset forfeiture funds. Another 61 percent got some money, but under $50,000, and 25 percent got over $50,000.

The Connecticut state police garnered the most of any agency — in the federal program alone, the state police got $271,761 in calendar year 2013, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Kathleen Duffy, fiscal administrative manager with the state DESPP, said $716,010 went to municipalities through the state program in the fiscal year ending June 2013. According to Duffy, the state doesn’t track funding by calendar year.

Duffy said this doesn’t include disbursements to the DESPP, as “we don’t write checks to ourselves.” The state reported asset forfeiture deposits totaling $40,885 revenue to the state police troops and $51,347 to the statewide narcotics task force for fiscal year ending June 2013.

Police departments reported using the funds in a variety of ways, from “drug buy” money, in which undercover officers buy drugs from a suspected dealer to build a case against them, to buying undercover vehicles such as Ford Fusions, to using it to fund training-related travel expenses.

In addition to travel, the state police spent $137,206 on law enforcement and security supplies, with other funds going toward items such as education, training and equipment, according to Duffy.

About 50 state police officials attended conferences in New Jersey, Virginia, New York, Vermont, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, California and Texas in the 2012-13 fiscal year with forfeiture funds.

The state police, which regulate boxing in Connecticut, spent $2,322 to send one trooper to two Association of Boxing Commissions Annual Conferences.

Four state police officials, including Stebbins, attended the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, or CALEA, Conference and hearing in March 2013 in South Carolina, using $8,254 in asset forfeiture funds.

‘Illegal money used in a positive manner’

With those involved in the drug trade becoming more sophisticated, officers need training to keep up with the latest information and trends, according to Vance.

“There are times when training isn’t available here in Connecticut, and we have to send people for three to five days to a conference in another state,” Vance said. “It is not the venue of pleasure and play — these are venues for education. We all learn from each other.”

Officers could learn about a new strain of heroin in another part of the country before it migrates here, or how to safely dismantle a methamphetamine laboratory at a typical conference, according to Vance.

“It is illegal money being used in a positive manner,” Vance said of forfeiture funds. “How it is used is strictly monitored, as it can only be used for certain things, such as education.”

After reviewing the information obtained by the New Haven Register on where state police traveled and the conferences and seminars they attended, Einhorn said some of the trips didn’t seem necessary.

Einhorn said he wants more oversight on the municipal level, rather than more state or federal government oversight.

“It is a question of home rule — towns should be governing this themselves,” Einhorn said.

Einhorn, a long-time former police commissioner in New Haven, said he regularly pushed for more information on asset forfeiture funding police got, and how it was being used.

According to Einhorn, many municipal boards don’t realize how much police departments get, and if they did, it might reduce how much budget money a department gets, saving taxpayers money.

“If it turns out police don’t get enough money in the budget, they go to slush funds,” Einhorn said.

U.S. Attorney Deirdre Daly said the U.S. DOJ’s Office of the Inspector General has an audit process to ensure that the funds are used for appropriate law enforcement purposes.

Daly said it is always positive to be able to give back to police departments that work to combat and investigate crimes.

“We also believe it is another deterrent mechanism, so offenders understand they are not only at risk for losing their personal freedom, but any proceeds from their crime might also be seized,” Daly said.

Attorney Donald Cretella of Bridgeport, who has defended clients who have had assets seized in criminal cases, said the use of the funds should be limited to purchases like new equipment or police dogs. He also objected to this money being used for travel, even if it is for a training purpose.

“Using it for travel, especially if it is to a warm place in the winter, I would disagree with that,” Cretella said.

A few municipal police agencies reported using some forfeiture funds for travel.

Groton Town Acting Police Chief Steven Smith, whose department got $5,141 in federal and in $343 state asset forfeiture funds in 2013, said his department spent a portion on narcotics enforcement and for attendance at an International Association of Chiefs of Police conference in Philadelphia.

Smith, who did not attend the conference, spoke in favor of the practice.

“These events provide public safety attendees specific information regarding new crime trends and current law enforcement efforts to combat them, and offer exposure to new or emerging technology,” Smith said.

Hamden police also used some of the department’s forfeiture funds for lodging for out-of-state class attendance.

“That is within the spirit and expectations of what the money should be used for,” Hamden Police Chief Thomas Wydra said.

Hartford police reported spending just over $100,000 in the fiscal year ending June 2013 for professional development training and conferences with asset forfeiture money, and indicated that most were in-state.

‘Probably should be subject to more sunlight’

Michael Lawlor, undersecretary for criminal justice policy and planning with the state Office of Policy and Management, said some police agencies have been guarded about the forfeiture money they get and how they spend it, “because it is discretionary.”

Lawlor reviewed the information provided by police agencies to the New Haven Register and said he found no obvious violations.

As for how police agencies chose to spend any funds they received, Lawlor said he hopes any law enforcement agency focuses on expenditures that will help reduce violent crime, noting how the drug trade results in violence.

“It probably should be subject to more sunlight,” Lawlor said, referring to how much departments get and how they spend it. “Most things that go on in government is directly appropriated by a legislative body, but there are off-budget items like this that aren’t. Since there is a lot of discretion here, the priority should be in preventing violent crimes.”

Other departments that got a lot on the federal side include: Hartford police at $102,985; Newington police at $98,075; West Haven at $94,958 and Manchester at $93,359, according to the U. S. Attorney’s Office.

For state asset forfeiture funds, Hartford, Waterbury and Manchester got the most.

Smaller police departments typically don’t get as much asset forfeiture funding as the large cities. Some towns, such as Coventry, Cromwell, Easton, Guilford, and Monroe, didn’t get any asset forfeiture funds in 2013.

In Bristol, where police bought a new shooting decision simulator in December for about $50,000, Chief Thomas Grimaldi said, “Whenever we can take asset forfeiture money, particularly from drug dealers, and purchase equipment where it doesn’t affect the budget or taxpayers’ money, that is always a good thing.”

Criminal asset forfeiture money comes from convicted individuals such as Nelson Perez-Guzman, a Hamden resident who was sentenced in 2012 to 10 years in prison for trafficking cocaine. He had to forfeit $14,394 in cash that was seized at his residence, money divided between police departments like Hamden and New Haven, which participated in the investigation.

Police in the New London area got to share funds after seizing $26,754 in cash from New London man Steven Duong, who is serving a 69-month prison sentence after police raided his home and found a marijuana operation, cash and a firearm, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Restrictions and oversight

There are restrictions and limitations on how police agencies are allowed to spend the money.

There are separate restrictions for federal and state funds.

For federal funds, law enforcement agencies may use the money for investigations, training, facility improvement, equipment, drug and gang education and awareness programs. There are limitations; these funds aren’t supposed to be used to pay regular salaries, or pay for non-law enforcement classes. They generally may not be used to pay for food or beverages, but there are exceptions, such as meals purchased while an officer is on official travel.

In the federal program, the federal government keeps 20 percent of forfeited assets, with the remaining 80 percent shared between the departments that participated in a case, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

With state drug asset forfeiture funds, 10 percent goes to the Division of Criminal Justice for use in prosecutions, 20 percent goes to the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services for substance abuse treatment and education programs, and 70 percent is divided among state and local police departments.

Of the state funds distributed to police, 85 percent must be used to enhance drug investigation and enforcement and for training on gang related violence, and 15 percent must be spent on drug education.

Christopher Malany, supervisory assistant state’s attorney for the asset forfeiture bureau in the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney, oversees the state program.

After the Register compiled information from police agencies on how they spent their asset forfeiture money, we shared it with Malany, who indicated he did not see any problems with the way police agencies spent the funds.

“The expenditures that are listed seem unremarkable,” Malany said.

Using these funds to buy fitness equipment is acceptable, as police need to maintain fitness levels, with mandatory physical requirements, according to Malany.

Malany said using this money for travel expenses to attend conferences and training seminars is also acceptable.

“Here, we have sent people to prosecutorial conferences, and that is an acceptable use,” Malany said. “With Connecticut’s economy, often the first thing to go in budgets is money for training. If you don’t have ongoing training for officers, they’ll be behind the curve. Drug dealers use cell phones, iPads and laptops a lot. If police aren’t properly trained in forensics, they could lose evidence. If a national training conference is in San Diego, then that is where it is.”

While police agencies have to file reports on how they used federal funds, there is no such annual report required on the state level, Malany said.

“The police department has the discretion of how to spend the money,” Malany said. “The police departments are not required to submit proposed expenditures for approval — some do, but most don’t. We do what we can to provide guidance.”

If anyone sees an issue with how police spend the money, Malany suggested that they address it with the local Board of Police Commissioners or legislative body, such as the Town Council or Board of Selectmen. Citizens can also report concerns with Malany’s office, at the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney, and it would follow up with the police department, he said.

According to Malany, the last time there was a problem was years ago in Hartford, when his office determined that it wouldn’t be appropriate for a vehicle to be purchased for use by a municipal official who wasn’t a police official.

Malany said the state funds are to be spent on drug enforcement efforts, but anything that enhances the patrol function is permissible, so the purchase of items like body armor or weapons would be allowed, for example.

The funds must be held in a separate account, and don’t have to be fully used in any given fiscal year.

Peter Carr, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Justice, which oversees the federal program, declined to comment on the information provided by Connecticut police agencies to the New Haven Register regarding how they spent the money they received.

Carr said the Guide to Equitable Sharing outlines that to ensure against potential waste, fraud or abuse, law enforcement agencies must submit annual Equitable Sharing Agreement and Certification forms for review, and if applicable, an audit report.

“To the best of our recollection, we have not identified specific issues of impermissible spending by Connecticut agencies that rose to the level of an audit or impermissible letter,” Carr said.

If an agency doesn’t comply with the federal guidelines, they can face sanctions, such as denial of their sharing request, exclusion from the program, civil enforcement actions for breach of contract, and even federal criminal prosecution.

In May, former Romulus, Michigan, police chief Michael St. Andre pleaded guilty to conducting a continuing criminal enterprise, embezzlement by a public official and misconduct in office, with the alleged wrongdoing including the misappropriation of asset forfeiture funds for personal gain.

Eapen Thampy, executive director of Americans for Forfeiture Reform, based in Missouri, said there are thousands of recipients annually, with very little oversight or auditing to protect against inappropriate purchases like luxury items or trips.

Thampy expressed concern over how much control police have over how the money is spent, without consent from an outside municipal legislative body.

“Even if they are following the law, they are not necessarily using it for the best thing,” Thampy said. “Military grade equipment in a local police department is probably legal, but is it desirable? There is this conflict of interest because law enforcement gets to decide what they do with the revenue, rather than having it go through a system of checks and balances. We advocate that this money should go to a general fund, and a legislative body should appropriate it.”

Connecticut Police Chiefs Association President John Daly, who is chief in Southington, responded to the criticism by saying that the law allows for police to decide how the money will be spent.

“I would say that the way it is set up now, with the money being used for training and to enhance investigative skills, that is where it is well spent,” John Daly said.